Jalen Ramsey’s return to Jaguars could help heal trade wounds

After staying away due to “illness,” Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey will report back to the team on Wednesday.

For a time, it appeared as if the rift between Jalen Ramsey and the Jacksonville Jaguars was irreparable. The Pro Bowl cornerback had demanded a trade, and the team look poised to follow through given the unfolding drama. Rumors swirled around a number of teams, including the Kansas City Chiefs, as a possible new home for Ramsey over the course of several days—dominating the league’s media landscape.

Yet day after day, nothing happened.

In a move that shocked talking heads, the Jags ended up playing Ramsey in a Thursday night game against the Tennessee Titans. It was surprising because, if they were planning on trading Ramsey, they were risking a potential injury, a la Earl Thomas in 2018. In that scenario, the Seahawks tempted fate by playing Thomas amid trade rumors and then he broke his leg. Thomas left for the Baltimore Ravens in the offseason and the Seahawks got nothing for a primary asset except a comp pick that will max at the bottom of the third round.

The move to play Ramsey was a strong signal from the Jaguars that they weren’t going to budge despite Ramsey’s trade demands and the distraction it was creating.

Then Ramsey called in sick for work.

In a move that everyone translated as a negotiation tactic, Ramsey’s absence felt like another ploy to get his way. Would his absence become a rare mid-season holdout? And how much longer would the Jaguars tolerate the ongoing back and forth in a still salvageable season?

Well the sickness has apparently subsided, because the Jags staffers woke up to the news this morning saying Ramsey will be back.

On the one hand, his return seems to signal some peace offering, a sign that he will be a team player despite not wanting to be on this particular team. He played along in Week 3 and he’s apparently preparing to do the same for Week 4. Then again, he’s suddenly banged up—not sick—with new concerns in his back and hamstrings. If he is damaged goods, he’s no help to another team either. If he’s lying, it only adds to the drama that other teams would be inheriting as well.

At this point, it seems like his return could heal some of the trade wounds if he’s willing to put his head down and do the work. He already did that for Week 3 and he’s back again for Week 4. String enough of these together and the rumors will die off. Perhaps that’s what the Jags have been planning all along, to ignore the distraction and dismiss the demands by going about their own business hoping the problem child joins back in with the group.

If that’s the case, the top cornerback on the open market apparently hasn’t been truly available all along. That would explain the Jags exorbitant prices to any reported trade offers in the first place. It would also mean a team like the Chiefs will have to look elsewhere if they want to import a top-tier cornerback option. Assets like Ramsey don’t come along very often in the market—hence the reason why the Jags maybe never planned on letting go.